Electrical drop-annunciator



(No Model.)

T. W. LANE. ELECTRICAL" DROP ANNUNOIATOR.

No. 480,729. Patented Aug. 16, 1892.

ivvf/vr R m map UNITED 5 STATES PATENT rrrcE.

THOMAS W. LANE, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE ELECTRIC GAS LIGHTING COMPANY, OF PORTLAND, MAINE.

ELECTRICAL DROP-ANNUNCIATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 480,729, dated August 16, 1892.

I Application filed December 19, 1891. Serial No. 415,621. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS W. LANE, acitizen of the United States, residing at Boston, Sufiolk county, Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrical Drop-Annunciators, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements particularly in the manner and means.of supporting, retaining, and operating the armature of the magnet. 4

My invention consists in the combination of all the elements of the annunciator properly arranged and constructed and will be readily understood from the drawings, in which Figure l is an end view of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a section through the line X of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side View.

I use a double magnet Y Y-that is, a magnet with two helices mounted upon a common base Z, to which base is rigidly fixed a twoarmed guide-piece V, each arm being perforated at its extremity. Through these perforations is loosely passed a rod D, which is either squared or feathered, so as to prevent its turning in its rests. About the rod between the two arms a helical spring F is arranged, one end of which bears against the arm of the guide-piece and the other end by means of a pin 1 or otherwise is fastened to the movable rod D, whereby the spring normally tends to hold the rod D in a certain position to allow the lug O on the armature E to support the lever-arm B. Beyond the guide-piece Vthe rod D projects long enough to be screwed into armature E for the said magnet, and may project as a lug 0 beyond its outer face. The armature is screwed or fastened upon this end of the rod D. The other devices area standard T, one bent end of which is to be fixed to the annunoiator face-plate S at 2, and the other, bent at right angles with it, is to be perforated. A rod R passes through the armature plate-face S and carries the ordinary index-pointer A, while the other end of the rod is supported by the unattached end of the standard T and carries a lever-arm B, arranged at a proper angle with the plane of the pointer-rod. The remaining device is composed of two supports 19 1), car- D. hen the button is pushed by the per- 6::

son wishing to signal and the current admitted to the magnet Y Y, the armature E is attracted and overcomes the stress of the helical spring F, thereby retracting the rod D and withdrawing the projection or lug C from the finger b of the lever-arm B, which lever immediately falls by its own weight upon the catch g and revolves the index pointer A, which indicates the desired number, name, or other visual signal upon the annunciator-face. Upon the cessation of the current and demagnetization of the magnet the armature E is carried back to position by stress of the helical spring F. It is then necessary to restore the pointer A to its normal position, and in order to do that to raise the lifting-lever G until its catch 9 lifts the lever B, so that its upper prong I), being preferably beveled, will slip over the projection O as far as permitted by the lower prong 1). Thus the pointer-arm A will be restored to its proper position. In the drawings a form of lifting device is shown which may be variously modified, and the device for carrying the index-pointer maybe differently arranged, provided it be so arranged as to co-operate with the armature and helical spring when arranged substantially as described.

I am aware that many Letters Patent are issued for similar devices, and I do not claim 0 any single element of the above-described in vention, broadly, inasmuch as the magnet, spring, guides, rods, armatures, standard, pointer-rod, lever-arm, and lifting device are all old and well known under different forms, 5 as is also the method of operating an indexpointer by means of electricity and a magnet; but

What I do claim as my invention is 1. In an electro-magnet annunciator, the loo combination of two magnets mounted upon a common base with a guide-piece, substantially as described, and adapted to carry a rod, a rod supported and retained by the guide-piece and extending beyond the same, an armature rigidly attached to the extension of said rod, a lug or projection beyond the armature, and a helical spring about said rod between the extremities of the guide, adapted to hold the armature in a normal position, all so combined that upon the magnet being energized the armature will be attracted and repress the rod and upon the magnet being de-energized the armature will be repulsed by the operation of the helical spring, sub.- stantially as described.

2. In an electro-magnetic annunciator, the combination of a double magnet upon a base affixed to an annunciator face-plate, a guide piece perforated at its extremities,arod passing through and adapted not to turn in the perforations of the guide-piece and extending beyond the same, a helical spring about the rod between the extremities of the guidepieee, an armature rigidly fixed to the extremity of said rod, a projection upon or beyond said armature, a standard adapted to be rigidly fixed to an armature-plate face at one end and to ofier support for a rod by its other end, a rod supported by this standard, and an index-pointer at one end and a lever-arm at the other end ofi said rod, which is adapted to swing looselyin the standard aforesaid, all'so combined and arranged that upon the magnet being energized the armature will be attracted and withdraw the projection on its face from the support of the lever-arm, allowing it to fall, and upon the magnet being deeuergized the armature will move back: by force of the helical spring, all substantially as described.

3. The combination, upon an annunciatorplate face, of devices, substantially as described, for moving a pointer-hand, each consisting of a double magnet, support, guide, rod, armature, projection, standard, rod, pointerarm, and lever-arm, in combination with a lifting device adapted to restore the lever arm or arms to the lug upon the armature after operation of the apparatus, substantially as described.

4. In an electrical annunciator having a finger index movable upon the face-plate, the combination of a magnet with two helices mounted upon a common base-plate, asupport or guide-piece properly located between the said helices, adapted to carry a rod,a rod supported in said support or guide-piece andprojecting beyond the same, an armature connected with the projectingend of said rod, a spiral springsurrounding saidrod and adapted to normally hold the samein a given position, a standard properly fixed to the annunciator faceplate, anda tworarmed lever, its two arms being properly arranged in different planes-win, one arm the index-pointenjthe other the lever-arm-supported or carried by said standard and having its: lever-arm properly forked to allow the, armature projection or log to sustain the same, together with a lifting device adapted to the purpose of restoring said lever-arm of said rod to its normal position after each retraction of themmature, all substantially as described and shown.

December 16, 1891.

THOMAS W. LANE.

Witnesses:

CHARLES H. HANSON, CHARLES T. DAVIS. 

